Short notes from a dinner last Saturday featuring charcoal grilled Wagyu, Oz ribeye and lamb chops.

Raimat El Moli Cabernet Sauvignon 1994 - Vibrant, fruity, with some initial sweetness that gives way to a smoky core. Well integrated and balanced. Not complex but a real nice drink. Probably at its peak now although has the stuffing to go for a few more years. WOTN for me.

Amon-Ra 2003 - Decanted about 30 minutes before drinking. Smooth, rich, thick but not jammy. Chocolate on the nose. I get the impression that it's wound up pretty tight now and needs time for whatever else is in there to come out. Somewhat disjointed. At this point not a bad wine but I don't see what all the fuss is about. I think the Godolphin is a much better wine. Better to leave this alone for a few years to see what happens.

Provenance Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon 2003 - Very fine-grained tannins in the texture. Very young and primary. Lean but fruity. Good.

We finished with a Banfi Rosso di Montalcino 2004 but I didn't take notes on that since I had very little of it. There was also some discussion about whether to open a dessert wine to go with the opera cake but we figured that was enough alcohol for one night.